7 tips to reset your budget with a 21-day financial fast

If you set New Year's resolutions to get your finances in order, Michelle Singletary suggests a fast to reset your spending. She's walking people through her "21 Day Financial Fast" in a Washington Post series and joined The Daily Circuit to offer budgeting tips.

The basics of her fast:

Here's a list of what you can spend on during the fast: food (bought at the grocery store), medicine, essential personal hygiene products, items that may be required for your job, your regular household bills such as rent or a mortgage, car payments, utilities, gas and even your credit-card payments. This isn't an all-inclusive list. The point is you continue to pay for the things you need and the bills you already have.

Here's what you are not allowed to do during the fast: go to the movies, shop for clothes, buy lunch or coffee at work, pay for any restaurant or fast-food meals, spend on entertainment. The goal is to shut down all conspicuous consumption. You will temporarily stop spending on things you can do without.

7 tips to reset your financial budget

1. Cash only. Singletary said it's too easy to be disconnected from your spending when you use plastic.

2. Make a budget. There are a lot of great budgeting tools online now that you can connect to your accounts and monitor spending. These won't be as helpful when you're only using cash, but they can go back in time and show you your spending trends.

3. Grocery shop with a list. Make sure you eat before going to the store to prevent impulse buys based on cravings. As you put each item into your cart, think about why you are purchasing it and how you will use it for your meals at home.

4. Pick your indulgences. Singletary said it's OK to have certain things you splurge on, such as dinners out or pedicures, but doing a financial fast allows you to see which indulgences you truly value.

5. Downgrade to a "dumb phone." One caller said he went back to a flip phone to save money. He can still use all the apps on his smartphone when he is at home or at a place that has wireless internet.

6. Think about why you're spending on certain items. Singletary told a story about a woman who was eating out a lot. When she started digging into her finances, she realized she was using it to comfort herself while she was grieving. She cut back on the dinners out and used that money to get counseling.

7. Make a plan to pay off credit card debt. If you are carrying a balance on your credit cards, you're paying monthly interest that you could be using elsewhere. Make a plan to pay it off. If you need help, consider a debt counseling service. They can often negotiate lower interest rates and consolidate debt.